Sean C. Morgan
Velma Canfield told the District 55 School Board Monday night about an employee whose paycheck was $6.36 for September.
She mentioned another who made “100 something,” who needs needs health insurance but had to drop it. She said the employee couldn’t drop it until this month, resulting in a small paycheck.
Another employee added that her check was only $57.
“It could have been better had we not went to a four-day school week,” said Canfield, president of the Sweet Home chapter of the Oregon Employees Association, which represents the district’s classified employees, who provide support services in the district. That was because she worked fewer hours and had to pay for her insurance.
Board member Kevin Burger asked about the 15 or 16 employees that the union says have lost hours and insurance coverage because of the four-day school week.
Canfield said last month that those who don’t qualify for full coverage were, last year, able to pay the increased personal costs of their insurance by working the extra day.
The district initially agreed to let employees in that situation work an extra half hour a day so they could qualify for full coverage, Canfield said last month. Of the approximately 15 people she knows of who fall into that category, five were actually expected to enroll, she said. Last month, one of them wasn’t taking health insurance at all because that employee lost a day’s wages and didn’t get the extra half hour the employee had been promised.
“We made a plan to bring those hours back,” said Supt. Don Schrader said Monday night. “We’re in the process of doing that.”
Last month, he said the union and district disagreed on the correct interpretation of the contract. Part of the problem is that the contract with the union was written when the school week was 40 hours. Some employees, he said, were confused over whether insurance is based on hours per day or hours per week. The district’s position is that it is the latter.
Monday night, Business Manager Kevin Strong told The New Era, “No one had their district contribution reduced due to the four-day week.”
The union has filed a grievance, taking it straight to the superintendent because it was more of a grievance on behalf of an entire class of employees, said OSEA Field Rep. Jill Simmons. The grievance involves insurance, hours and subcontracting.
The subcontracting refers to administrators assigning classified work to teachers, Simmons said, and an administrator is doing classified courier work and custodial work.
The union presented the grievance to the superintendent on Oct. 1. He has 10 days to respond to it.
“We’re hopeful they’re going to present some resolution to the issues,” Simmons said.
“We’re getting that response together,” Schrader said. “I thought that the meeting (with the presentation) went well. It seemed to me we’ll be able work through these things.”
Present at the meeting were Mike E. Adams, Jan Sharp, Chanz Keeney, Dale Keene, Chairman Jason Redick, Jenny Daniels and Kevin Burger.
In other business, the board:
n Tabled a proposed $3,500 stipend for Sweet Home High School Assistant Principal Tim Porter, who handles .5 full-time equivalent curriculum director duties as well. He worked the two positions at .5 FTE each last year but is full-time assistant principal this year.
His salary already reflects half-time at curriculum director pay, but he is working more than full-time, Schrader said.
As part of the discussion, Keeney asked about Dave Goetz’s salary, whose year increased by 13 days as he moved from Junior High principal to director of human resources, transportation and maintenance, requiring him to work additional days.
Keeney said he has no problem with paying the administrators for their work, but the decision to increase the salary by 13 days should have gone to the board first.
“It only makes sense his paycheck would go up, but I wish it was put out front,” Keeney said. “I just like to be aware of what’s going on,” especially, he added, in light of the cuts the district has had to make.
Schrader said the assumption was he had just moved to another position with more days.
“We haven’t truly increased pay here,” said Redick. “He is still receiving the same pay.”
On Porter’s stipend, Daniels noted that he was already being compensated at a higher rate than his full-time job, assistant principal.
“If someone’s going to get a new stipend every time something’s added, I should be getting a lot of stipends at my work,” Daniels said.
“If we didn’t have the position, we would suffer a great loss,” Schrader said. “Having someone willing to do it as extra work is really worth it.”
Schrader suggested that the question be tabled, and he would return with more information about it. The board agreed, voting 7-0 to table it.
n Held off discussion and action on administrator salaries to allow Redick and Adams time to meet with the administrators and hammer out a proposal.
n Approved goals for 2012-13.
Among them is goal one, “Increase student achievement for all students.”
Goal two is, “Improve student achievement and close the achievement gap.”
Goal three is, “Balanced budget.”
Under each goal are several outcomes that indicate success. The board did not yet adopt proposed action plans to achieve these goals.
n Hired Joan Pappin an additional .2 FTE as school nurse.
n Approved a job share request by Sarah Lynn, junior high social studies.
n Accepted the resignation of Kathryn Tippetts, .25 FTE ESL teacher at the junior high and high school.
n Accepted the donation from Greg Lewelling of a 1989 Plymouth Sedan to the SHHS automotive program.
n Approved a request by the Sweet Home Genealogical Society to copy “The Huskian” as a fund-raising effort. Proceeds would be split between the society and the school.
n Approved achievement compact revisions.